The population history of Central Europe in the Early Bronze Age (2200/2100–1600/1500 BC) : A craniometric approach

Szeniczey, Tamás and Melis, Eszter and Jakab, Július and Bátora, Josef and Major, István and Molnár, Mihály and Horváth, Anikó and Palcsu, László and Gémes, Anett and Gyenesei, Katalin and Reyes-Centeno, Hugo and Kiss, Viktória and Hajdu, Tamás (2025) The population history of Central Europe in the Early Bronze Age (2200/2100–1600/1500 BC) : A craniometric approach. ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND ANTHROPOLOGICAL SCIENCES. ISSN 1866-9557 (print); 1866-9565 (online) (In Press)

Text szeniczey et al accepted in print with SI and letter of acceptance.pdf - Accepted Version Restricted to Repository staff only Download (7MB)

Abstract

During the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, migrations linked to the Yamnaya culture and the advent of bronze working triggered profound cultural, social, and economic shifts across Central Europe. As a result of this processes, many communities with distinct archaeological and cultural characteristics emerged during the Central European Early Bronze Age (circa 2200/2100 – 1600/1500 BC) in Central Europe, and with the Middle Bronze Age of the Carpathian Basin (2000/1900 – 1500/1450 BC). This study examines the biological relationships among these populations through biodistance analyses, aiming to clarify connections between cultural and biological affinities within the emerging heterogeneous communities. Craniometric and population graph analyses highlight the Danube's complex role as both a facilitator and barrier to gene flow across Early Bronze Age communities. The population graph analysis suggests varying connectivity among male and female groups. Beside geographical location and sex-biased mobility, ancestry may have had an impact on the formation of population structure in the Early Bronze Age, as communities north of the Danube have connections to Corded Ware cultures, whereas southern groups are more closely associated with Bell Beaker populations.

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